The lock-box shown in Fig. 29 A is eighteen inches wide, twenty-four inches long, and twelve inches deep, and with two thin boards four compartments are made as shown in Fig. 29 A. A lid is made of three boards and two battens, and securely attached to the box with strap hinges.
A hasp and padlock as well as two handles can be purchased at a hardware store and screwed fast to the chest.
A mess-kit may be made of a box with both lid and bottom nailed on securely. It is then sawed around three inches from one side, dividing it so that quite a little of the wood is fast to both sides. With hinges these are fastened together like a Gladstone bag, and on the inside, pockets and straps can be arranged to accommodate cooking-utensils and food-stuffs. Fig. 29 B shows this kit, and with a trunk-strap and a rope it can be easily carried from place to place.
For knives, forks, spoons, kettle-lids, and other small paraphernalia of the camping outfit a nest of pockets may be made from denim or unbleached muslin, like the one shown hanging on the wall in Fig. 28. The pockets are commodious and will accommodate many little things, and the nest can be folded over and tied at the corners with stout cord. A nest of this description should be three feet long, thirty inches high, and with three lines of pockets as shown in the illustration. The sewing should be done by hand with heavy linen or carpet thread, so that the stitching will not break.
A carry-all (Fig. 30) is made of denim or light sail-cloth, and will be found the most convenient sort of a catch-all, for it may be folded over and rolled up, then bound with a shawl-strap to carry it easily.
A piece of denim a yard wide and forty-two inches long is folded at the dotted lines A A as shown in the plan (Fig. 31). The edges will then reach the lines B B. Sew the flaps at the two ends and divide the long pockets into smaller ones as shown in Fig. 30. Knives, forks, spoons, and a variety of small things can be kept in this nest of pockets, and when in camp it may be hung from one end by rings, so that the pockets occupy a horizontal position and the contents can be easily gotten at.
The old-time tripod and kettle over an open fire of brush and logs is an unhandy means of cooking, for a sudden gust of wind will blow the smoke and sparks in all directions and dissipate the heat as well.